Can You Afford Not to Eat Organic?
By Michelle Sala, Integrative Health Coach
| If you’re eating only conventionally grown produce, chances are that you are eating way more pesticides than you think you are. Most of the pesticide residue on produce can not be washed off as it gets embedded in the flesh of soft skinned fruits and vegetables like berries, apples, and peppers.
These pesticides can be carcinogenic and hormone disrupting and many act as “estrogen” and take the place of natural estrogen in your body. This can cause myriad of problems from thyroid dysfunction, estrogen dominance, and obesity. Men are not immune to these issues! Not all fruits and vegetables are susceptible to pests and knowing which ones that are grown conventionally are safe, can save you a few bucks at the grocery store. Fortunately, depending on what part of the country you live in, the price of organic produce has come down a lot and the price difference between conventional and organic can be negligible. Trader Joe’s and Costco are both an economical source for organic produce. The EWG is a great resource for determining which fruits and vegetables are safe or not. The Dirty Dozen list are those crops that you never want to eat unless they are organic (apples, strawberries, lettuce…) and the Clean Fifteen are those conventionally grown crops that are safe to eat (bananas, avocados, cabbage…). Photo credit: mackoflower |
